Innovation in agriculture is critical to achieving sustainable growth and increased productivity. The Business Incubation Platform (BIP) at IITA–CGIAR is an instrument to scale and commercialize agricultural innovations across Africa. Through BIP, the development and commercialization of several successful agricultural innovations have helped farmers across the continent improve crop yields and increase their profits.
With a mission to create an active ecosystem of young entrepreneurs, BIP has been working towards increasing the outlook for African farmers and communities. The platform is now expanding to eastern and central Africa, with plans to develop and commercialize over ten innovations that will help address some of the key challenges facing African farmers, such as pests and diseases, lack of access to water, and poor soil quality.
One of the key innovations that BIP has developed is Aflasafe®, a biological control product that helps protect crops from fungal diseases. This innovation has successfully reduced fungal growth on crops like maize. This has improved food safety and increased profits for farmers.
Another innovative product, Nodumax®, is a bio-fertilizer that improves the yield and quality of legume crops by fixing nitrogen in the soil.
GoSeed is another intervention by BIP, responsible for promoting the commercial distribution of early-generation seeds of improved crop varieties developed by IITA.
Le IITA Youth Agripreneurs (IYA) embraced the term “agripreneur” to drive impact in the agricultural sector by engaging young people to provide employment opportunities and promote food sustainability. IYA equips young people with skills and knowledge, motivating them to engage in the agriculture space.
BIP CEO Debo Akande says the platform is empowering the next generation of agripreneurs to build a brighter tomorrow through agriculture and agribusiness. By addressing the key challenges facing African farmers, BIP is paving the way for a sustainable and prosperous future for the continent.
Contributed by Jamila Mohammed-Audu
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